China's army releases FPS trainer game

Common Topics

China has launched a first-person shooter titled Glorious Mission Online, that was co-developed by the People’s Liberation Army and offers players a chance to defeat a Japanese invader.

The software is a so-called “red game”, a genre that has become increasingly popular in China in recent years.

These patriotic shoot ‘em ups carry titles like Shining Sword 2 and Red Campaign. Most are set in the Sino-Japanese or Second World War and offer entertainment blended with thinly-veiled Communist Party propaganda.

Glorious Mission Online is a bit different, however, in that it was developed by the Nanjing Military Area Command of the PLA along with gaming company Giant Interactive Group, according to government organ Xinhua.

The original Glorious Mission was apparently distributed to PLA troops back in 2011 with the aim of improving their combat skills, but this new online version will look to “bolster national defence education” among teenage gamers.

Part of the update will include that modern flashpoint between old foe Japan and the Middle Kingdom, the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands – a group of rocks in the East China Sea currently owned by Japan but claimed by China.

Players in the game fight alongside the Chinese military to reclaim the territory, in a similar scenario to the mobile game Apple was forced to pull from the App Store last year, titled Defend the Diaoyu Islands.

Today is the 86th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Liberation Army. ®